Patient Web Sites Keep People Connected

For a lot of us here in Florida, the Sunshine State isn’t our native land.

We’ve been chased away by cold, state income taxes or perhaps the law. Whatever the reason, we hit the Interstates coming south, got stuck in the swamps or the sand, and simply stayed.

Many of our family and friends, on the other hand, remained wherever they were. And while that distance keeps them from popping in at inopportune times, it can also make it more difficult to communicate with them when necessary.

That includes when people go to the hospital, a time when communication with loved ones can be critical but difficult. To help keep people connected, no matter where they live, many hospitals have begun using personal patient Web sites designed to let others know what’s going on with friends or family.

An article on MSNBC.com discussed how two popular Web sites, CaringBridge and CarePages, have made huge impacts on people’s lives. Through the sites, patients or their families can document the progress of illnesses or injuries, while receiving communications from well-wishers.

Some of the sites have even earned national recognition.

In May 2007, a CNN.com story about a teen-aged cancer patient named Miles Levin who wrote on CarePages, helped draw roughly 25,000 viewers to his site.

I was one of them. And though I’d never met Miles before, when he died in August it affected me nonetheless. It was a powerful medium that, according to writings from his mother, helped him through the process of dying and helped his family cope with the loss.

Martin Memorial began using CaringBridge in October 2007, and the site has been highly utilized. In January 2008 alone, there were more than 5,600 total visits to Martin Memorial CaringBridge sites, with nearly 500 guestbook messages sent to patients.

The sites are easy to use and since they’re Internet-based, they’re available just about anywhere. Even the places we ran away from all those years ago.

--Scott Samples
Public Information Coordinator